Title 6 – May 2017 KQ 2 : What is the nature of Knowledge Bias arising as a consequence of “ Pattern seeking”?

Since having Type 2 error will mean “ Death” , humans have evolved to have a bias towards the type 1 error – a more cautious-natural selection for the cognitive processes to assume that all patterns are real.The inclination, aided and honed by natural selection , towards the Type 1 error decieves, dupes and fools the inner pattern detector by:

“Cognitive priming – the tendency to make up patterns based on previous experiences or beliefs (i.e. belief in super-natural

Dopamine – people with higher dopamine levels see more patterns = type 1 errors (see also paranoia as a form of highly increased patternicity), people with too low dopamine levels (i.e. cocaine use) do not identify patterns = type 2 error.

Evolved facial recognition: Humans see faces everywhere.

The wish to explain and understand the higher drives behind this world (religion, belief in aliens, higher powers and intelligences, conspiracies, etc.) also drives false identification of patterns.”

This tendency to find meaningful patterns(more so in meaningless Noise) combined with the propensity to see patterns increases when there is lack of , or no control. Also, if we are thinking about something a lot –we tend to see that as a pattern more often. The scientists and Doctors recognise and treat patternicity as an error in cognition.

Continuing this process through series of “Stimuli” combined with past events and experiences , necessitates humans to lump together causal associations with non causal ones. Consequently , the rationale for superstition comes about as evolutionary.

The evolutionary patternicity has further ramifications on our beliefs , our expectations and our biases to the extent of having Belief engines in our brain.